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 Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 4:00 pm
It was a Saturday morning. Less than a week ago, Jada Chamberlyn had become Sailor Scylla, and since then her life had not been quite... right. She'd seen someone she knew pass away. It didn't even matter that she hadn't liked the other girl. Vivian was still hospitalized. The story bring told (privately, of course, as these sorts of incidents were never publicised) was that Jada had gone home early, leaving Vivian and Lisa behind; there had been an incident, and the shock of seeing Vivian hurt had driven Lisa into a heart attack. No one could prove otherwise. The doctor had told the three older men that he could find no potential wrongdoing through Lisa's autopsy. No drugs in the blood, nothing. It was an accident, a horrible tragedy. As for Vivian, well, she'd suffered an impact to the skull. No one knew if she would wake up.
It made Jada nauseated, especially knowing the truth. It hadn't been a heart attack, and it hadn't been a car accident. It had been murder and attempted murder. What the whole deal was, she really didn't understand. Cosmic battles of light and darkness were supposed to be reserved for comics and movies, not for her life. But still, she had been flung into the center of it.
Jada had never needed to defend herself. She'd been spoiled, treated like the princess she was. The most danger she had ever been in was the danger of a charming young man trying to sweep her off her feet, and that wasn't mortal. Or unwelcome, as this was. This "Negaverse" was more than an emotional challenge, it was a physical threat. One her trusty can of mace would not work against.
She needed something more physical.
She'd spent the last few days looking into the Destiny City gyms, and had finally found one that struck her fancy. It was in a part of town that she would be able to comfortably access from school, with a variety of options for classes. Pilates, a bicycle class, weightlifting, and various other possibilities. She worked out every morning anyway, but this would give her a more formulated opportunity, with a formal support system and the ability to find a trainer. Not that she couldn't have gotten a trainer through her parents, but that would open up questions from them that she wouldn't want to answer.
Today was the day. It was 10:00 in the morning when she stepped out of the locker room into the middle of a rush of older women, older men, muscle-bound men (oh, what a view!) and muscle-bound women. There were a few others who didn't fit into one of those four categories, but they were rare this time of the morning; Without a doubt, she had to be the softest-looking person on the floor. At least, she felt she was as she glanced around, hiding her bewilderment.
She was almost screaming newbie. Her tank top was pristine, pressed; her workout pants almost had pleats. The sneakers she wore were brand new, pulled fresh out of the box not even 5 minutes before. She could have worn her normal workout clothing, but her pride had won that particular argument. Comfort could wait until she was more well known at the gym. Now, her class wouldn't start until 10:30, so what should she do until then?
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Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2010 12:35 pm
One could always find Andrew Collins at the gym on weekends. With nothing better to do, and no job to attend, he was free to roll out of bed at the crack of dawn and spend the day pushing his body to its limit. He'd just finished running on the treadmill when the dark-haired girl had ducked into the gym, sitting on a nearby bench with a towel around his neck and a water bottle in hand.
She looked completely and utterly lost--if her outfit didn't say as much, the way her eyes kept wandering did.
"Never been to a gym before, princess?" He'd call out with a good natured grin, his hair tugged back and out of his face. It wasn't uncommon for girls to start showing up more and more to the gym these days; peer pressure, a need to stay in shape, so on and so forth. He'd seen it enough times before.
And this one looked mighty concerned with her appearance, what, with how flawless her workout clothes were.
"They've got trainers you can talk to here if you have no clue where to start. Or, depending on what exactly your area of concern is," Every woman had a part of their body they loathed, he knew this well, "I can try to point you in the right direction."
Endorphins made Andrew Collins a very happy man.
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Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2010 1:29 pm
"Never been to a gym before, princess?"
Jada turned at the sound of the masculine voice, quickly identifying the owner of said voice as a handsome redhead sitting on one of the benches nearby. Oooh, one of the muscular ones. Excellent. "Only when I was a kid." she said cheerfully, and moved towards him. She moved like a dancer, strong legs and grace. She also moved like someone of a certain caliber, head held high and shoulders back. "I normally do any working out at home." There was enough room on the bench next to him that she was able to sit next to him, flashing him a grateful smile as though he'd invited her to sit and not just ask questions.
"Well, if you know about the gym, I would like to take advantage of you." she admitted. "I chose this particular location for a few of the programs it seemed to offer, but I'm not really sure what to do from here. The person I spoke to on the phone stated that the gym offered training courses and the occasional self-defense course?" her ankles crossed, as did her hands in her lap. "I don't really have any particular 'areas of concern' as you say. All in all, I'm very content with my body."
The girl was 5'5, tops. Maybe 110 to 130? It didn't look like there might be there to work with in terms of those self-defense courses, Jada knew. Still, she had reasons for being here. "I've also found it gets horribly lonely jogging by yourself, so I thought I'd start coming to the gym for some company." And it was a good place to show off, something the young woman loved to do. She didn't have the best eye-hand coordination (she'd never join the softball team here), but she could jog and bicycle with the best of them.
"Have any ideas where I should start?" Her bright eyes drifted to a young man walking by appreciatively before moving back to the redhead who had spoken to her. This gym might prove to be as much distraction as aid.
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Posted: Wed Feb 17, 2010 4:55 pm
There was something to be said about a woman who didn't lose her cool whenever a man challenged her; the strong, easily-offended types were always too funny to him, and usually ended with him getting slapped across the face even as he leered. Though his eyes never flickered from her face as she approached, he was well aware of her confident gait, and only turned his jaw a little to better face her when she took a seat.
Crimson brows arched at her words, but he tastefully resisted the urge to comment about how she was a little young for that sort of thing and instead focused on her athletic interests. Ursula was never into athletics.
Ursula was now also going to be stuck at home, undoubtedly carrying a purple yak baby sooner or later.
Shudder.
"There are a few self-defense courses." Drew would agree amiably, having checked into some of them himself. "But that's all they really are. Self-defense. And with the whackos on the streets these days," Surely she'd heard the rumors, "I'm honestly not sure how much they'll be able to help if you're seriously getting attacked. Stomp to the inside of the foot is great and all, but..." He grinned at her a little.
"I'm sure there'd be plenty of young men willing to jog with you." He continued on as he watched her eyes flicker, somehow managing to keep a straight face. "But if you want, I suppose I could give you a tour."
If she wanted. Which probably meant yes, definitely, if he was reading her right. Damn them minors, damn them all.
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Posted: Wed Feb 17, 2010 5:13 pm
"Solar Plexus, Instep, Nose and Groin." she said cheerfully, returning his grin. "Though with the weirdos on the streets these days..." her expression darkened a hair. "Sometimes I think a gun might be more useful than hand-to-hand combat lessons." A bullet right between that cotton-candy b***h's eyes might make Jada feel better. "However, there are the licenses, the permits, the safe... and improving your whole body is just so much more refreshing." Plus, she'd rather punch Serandite in the face than shoot her. Lisa might not have felt anything, but maybe Serandite needed a taste of the fear she had inflicted on her other companion before Scylla and Ophelia had interrupted. "If nothing else, working out will definitely improve my stamina." she shrugged, nose wrinkling as she shrugged at the redhead.
She glanced around the gym casually. There were some attractive young men there, most of which looked to be at least college age. "That is true," she agreed. "I wonder, however, how many of them would actually be willing to be a workout partner. There is more to getting healthy than just jogging." Stretches, and crunches, and bicycling and maybe even lifting weights. "I need a partner, not just a pervert to run half a step behind and watch my rear shake."
When he offered the tour, she tilted her head back up at him and smiled genuinely. "I'd appreciate it. I do have a beginner's boxing class in about 20 minutes. Think you could have me at the right place in time for it? And..." she held out her hand to him. "My name is Jada. A pleasure to meet you, ...?" she gave him an almost expectant look. After all, she couldn't go walking around with a stranger. Knowing his name would solve half of that problem.
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Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 12:23 pm
"That's the one." He said with amusement, and noted her change in mood, letting himself nod thoughtfully. "Those senshi characters are pretty shady. Dunno what they're up to, but..." He shrugged his shoulders slightly. "Nothing wrong with getting more fit, in the meantime. Destiny City didn't always used to be this way." Regretful, almost, but he shook that off too and would let his eyes wander along with hers.
"Oh, they'd be willing." He let a grin snake over his face as she spoke about getting eyed while trying to work out. At least she was realistic. "There's a few, but maybe it'd be better to partner with a girl. Then you don't have to worry so much. Someone from school'd be happy to go to the gym with you, I'd imagine." She didn't look old enough to not be in school--and if she was a dropout, well, you learned something new every day.
"Andrew Collins." His grip was firm, but not crushing. "And I probably could get you there." He got to his feet, pulling the towel from around his neck and wiping at his brow for a moment. "Your class should be downstairs." He'd glance idly to see if she'd follow before he'd start heading towards said staircase, winding his way through the exercise bikes and treadmills as he did so.
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Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 12:47 pm
The senshi characters were shady? PFFFFFFF. She looked up at the older man with her doe eyes (TM, baby) and gave him a shrug. "That's why I need to learn to defend myself. The days when a girl could count on a big, strong man to save her have been over and done with since my mother was my age." And that was a long time ago. Jada's mother was in her 40's! "But with these... menaces... on the streets!" Those damn Negaverser menaces.
"And you'd be surprised at the lack of interest in physical learning and education that I've encountered since I was in High School." The most physical that most the young women that she'd met of class engaged in was horseback riding. Jogging, weight lifting, those weren't feminine pursuits. "I have no choice but to work out. I like food too much not to."
She shook his hand, pleased by the grip. Confident, without needing to flex his muscles to prove anything. "And what do you mean by probably, Mr. Collins?" the look she shot his back was impish for a second before she followed the redhead through the bikes.
She ran a hand over one of the empty treadmills as they moved by. Mediu quality. It didn't really make sense for a gym to have horribly expensive equipment, she guessed. These passed, and were more than most people could afford. "Are you in college?" she asked him, curious. He looked about the right age to be.
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Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 2:06 pm
"Sad, but true." He mused, and he paused to idly think about how many women he himself had taken down and killed. He couldn't remember, and that was probably for the best. He enjoyed his job thoroughly, but it was essential that Andrew Collins and Obsidian stay separate. "Police can't do anything about it." It sounded like he thought it was a damn shame, shaking his head a little, glancing at her from the corner of his eye.
"Shame, really. But it'll come and bite them in the a**, in ten years or so." His grin was just wicked now, and he chuckled under his breath even as he lengthened his gait some. "Nothing wrong with liking food. Hell, better than half the girls around here who think starving themselves is an effective way to lose weight."
"Hm?" Oh, it was easy enough to mistake her question for something more suggestive, and he shot an amused glance over his shoulder. "Might get lost, myself. You never know..."
"No. Gym teacher at Meadowview." He'd never gone to college, he and Ursula having flittered over to Destiny City after they'd graduated. Getting a good education didn't really matter, not anymore. "Are you?" She looked old enough for it.
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Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 2:38 pm
The pace of his step had picked up as hers had dimmed for her to pay attention to the machines, and she had to double-step to catch back up to him. "Short legs." she told him, seriously. Then grinned. "You know, I've always wondered how you can get lost in a gym. I mean, there's big rooms and little closets. At the gyms in middle school and high school, all the little rooms were full of balls."
Jada should think before she opened her mouth again.
"I, like every other woman I know, have a weakness for chocolate. But honestly, bait a bear trap with a strawberry and..." she flushed, grinned. "So, you're a gym teacher?" She reached out, placed a small hand on his arm to try and slow him when he started to get too far ahead of her again. "I suppose I'm not that surprised. I remember my gym teachers always had the girls play all sorts of silly little games while they sat on their butts and watched. Blew whistles in faces." she scowled, nose crinkling. "I hope you're not one of those kind of teachers. It's more fun when the teachers play with you." Mostly because you could get your revenge on them. "What's it like, being a teacher? I've been thinking about becoming an English teacher." Or a librarian. Or a fashion model. Well, she had to keep her options open.
As for college... She looked at the ground in front of them, frowning. She probably looked a little disappointed. And she was. She couldn't wait for college. She glanced back up at the redhead. "I'm not in college right now. I work; I have a part-time job as a tutor, and a part-time job for my father. I'll be going to college soon though." And none of it was a lie. "Probably to Sovereign Heights first, just to get into the swing of things."
Where was he leading her? She pondered this question quite seriously, trying to remember the map of the gym she'd read over.
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Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 3:11 pm
"Not that short." He snorted, but when her hand reached out to alight on his arm, he would noticeably slow. "School gyms are like that, sure. These gyms have multiple floors, and wind around in ways you'd never expect." At the balls quip, he'd turn his head again and stare at her as though trying to figure out if she was kidding or not. "Welcome to teenage years. Balls dropping everywhere."
He was only half-listening when she was talking about chocolate, and focused more when she inquired again about his job. "Oh, no. It's far more fun to join in." Memories of chasing kids down the track and hosting dodgeball games were fond ones, indeed, and Drew chuckled to himself slightly. "Well. You have to like kids." Was the obvious no-brainer. "The older they are, the worse they are. If you can't take their s**t by the first day, you're outta luck. Little ones are easier, I'd imagine, 'specially if you're good with playing mommy all day."
What was a good, teacher-like answer?
"It's rewarding, in its own way." He continued, idly pushing open a back door that clearly said 'Employees Only' and led her through it. "If you like teaching things to people, and you like kids, I wouldn't say it's a bad route at all. Pay sucks, but it's enough to make a living, and it's worth it." His Miss America crown now, please.
After dodging past employee lockers, Drew shouldered open another door, revealing another open workout area that had doors strung along the sides of it. "Classes are in those doors. Aerobics, Pilates, yoga, karate. Did they tell you a number or anything like that?"
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Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 3:30 pm
"Your legs are longer, Andrew." she said his name lightly, keeping her hand on his arm. "You're taller." that part came out almost accusingly.
When his eyes landed on her, giving her some strange look she couldn't interpret, she tilted her head to the side, a distinctly feminine gesture of confusion. Was there something on her face? "Not everywhere." she hastily assured him. "No one was that clumsy." (Protip: You have to be more straightforward sometimes.)
She followed him through the door that clearly said Jada, you shouldn't be here. "I'm not worried about money." she said absently. "I've got enough of that." What was that on the locker? Mayonnaise? And was that a tomato on the floor?
Out the other door. "Oh wow." She looked in a few of the windows. "Room number, room number..." she pulled open the guide they'd given her and eyed the list of classes. "Kickboxing. Room Seventeen." She closed the guide, turned to Andrew with a smile. "Thank you. Is there a way to get back to the customer locker room without invading the staff rooms?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 28, 2010 9:51 am
"Women are equal to men these days, dontcha know." He teased back goodnaturedly, seemingly amused with the accusation of sorts. Taller, indeed. What she said next confused him in turn, and after glancing at her again, Drew decided to just drop the subject. Not everywhere, indeed.
"Well, then if teaching's something you're considering, I'd say go for it. You aren't shy enough to get walked on, from what I can tell." Strong, confident, authoritative when she needed to be. If she had the patience, and patience was key, he didn't see why she couldn't be a fine teacher.
"Room seventeen." He'd gesture down the left side of the room. "Should be just over thatta way." He met her gaze with a quirk of his lips, acting as though he was having to really think about her question. "Hm... Yeah, I vaguely recall something like that. Down this hall and take a right, should be the second door."
Stretching a little, the man decided a shower was sounding pretty good right now. "You need anything else?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 28, 2010 10:26 am
"Politically and sexually equal, perhaps. Physically, most women are a still a step below. Unless they are a wrestler or on steroids." Some of those martial artist women she had seen on TV didn't look like females at all! "Then their gender could be in doubt with pectoral muscles as big as their chest."
She looked back up at the redhead, gave him a nod. "I'll keep your recommendation in mind, Andrew. Thank you for your candor." she followed the sweep of his hand towards room seventeen. "Down the hall and take a right. Second door. Got it."
She pretended to look away when he stretched, out of courtesy. "No, I think you've taken very good care of me. Thank you." she held out her hand again for him to shake if he liked. "Perhaps I could take advantage of your kindness at some other time if you would allow me?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 28, 2010 10:36 am
"Don't even talk to me about those bodybuilders." Drew grimaced with disgust, shaking his head slightly as though to chase away the unwanted mental images. Those women could be thicker around than he was, and that was not a turn on. "Can flex 'em, too."
Her formality earned another grin, and he waved off her thanks. "It was no big deal. Was about to head home soon, myself, so I needed to come this way."
Drew wasn't exactly sure if she meant to keep sounding as though she was being suggestive, or not, but took her hand easily. "I think I could allow that. Can have you show me some of these moves you'll pick up from your classes, huh?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 28, 2010 10:58 am
"I solemnly swear I shall never mention the ironbound woman again." it was easy for Jada to agree to that. Her mental images of them were horrifying. "And- oh eww, I didn't want to think of that!" Mr. Collins recieved a severe scowl from the less-intimidating female at his side. Her pecs weren't flexable. Thank goodness.
When he released her hand, she looked up at the taller man and made a mocking little karate chop at the air. "Hyah. That's about all I know, and I learned from Chuck Norris." Jada gave Andrew a shy shrug and sheepish grin. "I guess I'll see you sometime then."
A glance at the clock said 10:20; she turned and moved for room 17, taking careful looks at each sign. Ten minutes to class! Eeek. She always wanted to be early to classes! It was pretty easy to find the room, and she ducked inside with a final glance down the hallway.
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